Breaking new ground for women trainers at the Grand National - Wales Online Sport Breaking new ground for women trainers at the Grand National It’s been more than 100 years since a Welsh-trained horse won the Grand National – and Rebecca Curtis wants to be the one to break the jinx with Teaforthree. Share Get rugby updates directly to your inbox + Subscribe Thank you for subscribing! Could not subscribe, try again laterInvalid Email It’s been more than 100 years since a Welsh-trained horse won the Grand National – and Rebecca Curtis wants to be the one to break the jinx with Teaforthree. Abbie Wightwick caught up with her It was the moment she’d been waiting for. When Teaforthree galloped his way to a win at Cheltenham last year, trainer Rebecca Curtis was as thrilled as if she’d been riding him herself. She didn’t need to place a bet or sip champagne at the bar to feel a surge of adrenalin as she watched the gelding storm to the finish in the festival opener, the Diamond Jubilee National Hunt Chase under JT McNamara.

It was a hugely prestigious win that garnered publicity for the Wales-born trainer who has 50 horses at her stables in Newport, Pembrokeshire. The Cheltenham Festival, seen by many as the Olympics of horse racing, is a high point in the sporting calendar and Rebecca was immediately asked if Teaforthree would run the Grand National after that win. Now, a year on, that’s exactly what he’s about to do. As well as global fame, history is also at stake at Aintree because if the nine-year-old bay wins next Saturday he’ll be the first Welsh-trained horse to do so since 1905 – that honour goes to a horse called Kirkland – and only the fourth winner trained by a woman in 174 years of the race. Not only that, he will also be racing against a number of Wales-trained horses including Cappa Bleu, who took the 2009 Cheltenham Foxhunters on his debut. Others from Wales which are on course to run are Tim Vaughan’s Beshabar and Peter Bowen’s Always Waining, who has won the last three runnings of the John Smith’s Topham Chase over the Grand National’s many fences.

So the pressure is mounting but Rebecca – who has had 40 wins this season, including another with a different horse at Cheltenham – is calmly on course. She says she’s ‘very pleased’ with Teaforthree’s form – bookie William Hill’s number one pick at the time of going to press, feted for his bags of stamina, excellent jumping ability and top quality form – and his preparations for the Grand National are going well. At the age of 32, Rebecca is a rising name in the hugely competitive, notoriously male-dominated world of horse racing. Only two women have ever trained Grand National winners before. Jenny Pitman captured the race for the first time with Corbiere in 1983 and again in 1995 with Royal Athlete while Venetia Williams won with Mon Mome in 2009. Despite these statistics Rebecca brushes off suggestions it’s harder for women to rise to the top in national hunt racing. Success depends on results, not gender she says – pointing out that gender was no barrier to the likes of Jenny Pitman, Henrietta Knight, Lucinda Russell, and Venetia Williams.

“I don’t think in this day and age people care what sex you are as long as you can get winners. “There are plenty of good female horse trainers although I think I am the only one in Wales.” If Teaforthree wins the Grand National this year, the 166th running of the world’s greatest chase, of course it’ll be a huge boost for all women hoping to make it in the racing world. But trail blazing isn’t Rebecca’s main concern because what motivates her is a love of horses and the thrill of racing. Learning to ride at the age of four at her parents’ dairy farm in Pembrokeshire, she went into showjumping and rode at national level for the Welsh junior team before getting her first job in racing at the age of 17. Fortunately for the horse-mad teenager, racing trainer Peter Bowen’s stables were just 10 miles down the road from home so she didn’t have to travel far to start her career. “I was always involved with horses and always rode and I always loved racing,” she explains. “I’m quite a competitive person and rather than the riding side I wanted to go into the training side.

“I worked for Peter in his stables and I rode out his horses and did a bit of point to pointing (amateur racing over fences).” Knowing she was keen on training, Rebecca also wanted to spread her wings and see a bit of the world beyond West Wales. At 21 she went travelling to the US but it wasn’t long before she gravitated back to horses. Staying in America four years, she got jobs with legendary US trainers Richard Mandella and Dan Hendricks and learned how things were done Stateside. Dan and Richard, a member of the US Racing Hall of Fame, showed their young charge how they nurtured winners, quite a different challenge to what she was used to as in America, racing is all done on the flat. Richard is known for running one of the most competitive tracks in North America, but that didn’t daunt Rebecca. “The way they train is completely different. I went out with the intention of working with horses but wasn’t sure where. “If you can ride fairly well it’s quite easy getting a job and I enjoyed my time there.” Arriving back home in Wales, now aged 25, she felt she had learned enough to establish herself as a bona fide trainer.

After working in racing stables at home and abroad and with more than 20 years in the saddle, she felt confident she could do it and opened Fforest Farm stables. As a dairy farmer’s daughter she was lucky to have land at her disposal for the gallops as well as a private beach. The harder part was persuading people to send their horses to her for training and to get a winner – not easy, she concedes, even for the most talented trainer. Because there is no official career path in horse racing, Rebecca knew the best way to get clients to choose her was to get a winner as fast as possible. “It’s very hard when you’re starting,” she points out. “You have to have a lot of experience before people will take you on. “Obviously you can’t expect owners to send a horse to you to train with no proof you can train so I started off by buying a few of my own horses to race. “I bought handicappers from Ireland that had maybe gone a bit stale.” One of these was the Irish handicapper Mango Catcher who was her first winner in 2008, just three years after returning from the US.

Mango Catcher’s win led to an article about his young trainer in industry bible Racing Post and from there Rebecca’s profile began to grow. “The win and the article got me exposure and an owner contacted me with a couple of horses that were a bit stale and they won as well so it started from there really,” she recalls. Rebecca went on to train eight winners in the 2008/09 season and more than doubled that the following year with 25 finishing first past the post. This success attracted the patronage of one of the big names in jump racing, racehorse owner JP McManus. With him came the services of top jockey Tony McCoy, who often rides horses for Rebecca which are not owned by his principal employer. When the jockey rode Made In Time for an impressive win at Ffos Las racecourse in Carmarthenshire, he suggested to JP McManus that he buy the inexperienced ‘bumper’ and keep him with Rebecca. This proved such a success he bought several more for the Welsh horsewoman to train and has had up to six horses at Fforest Farm. But it’s one thing spotting a good horse, another to get it to win, as Rebecca knows all too well.

“It’s been hard work and slow progress to this point over the years. We’ve had winners and losers. “Getting a winner is a combination of lots of things. “We have lots of nice young horses and hope we train and look after them well and keep them fit and well.” One of the natural advantages at her disposal is a private beach. Although she doesn’t run the horses along the sand, she uses the surf to cool their legs and says she loves seeing them happy in the beautiful Pembrokeshire countryside. “Training a horse you pick up little bits of other people’s training methods and use your common sense. “You just use your head and how you feel the horse should be trained.” It’s a formula that obviously works. Starting with just four horses seven years ago, Rebecca now has 50 at her stables, some owned by herself, some owned by others and her main objective is to ensure all are healthy, happy and well trained. Horses, she reveals, are born to race each other and she has little time for people who criticise the sport – and the Grand National’s safety record in particular.

The race, which has a reputation as the ultimate test for horse and jockey, sparked more than usual controversy last year when two horses died despite the introduction of new safety measures. JP McManus’ Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Synchronised, one of the favourites, fell at Becher’s Brook and was later put down. The second victim of the fence, which has claimed more lives than any other in the Grand National, was According To Pete, who was also put down after suffering severe injuries. Afterwards the RSPCA called for the removal of Becher’s Brook and a complete overhaul of the race. Rebecca, however, doesn’t believe the course is unsafe. “I don’t think the Grand National is a cruel race. Racehorses love what they do. It’s the same with any sport, rugby or any other sport, there are going to be injuries. “Horses are born to gallop in herds and jump and to carry on running if they fall. “You can tell early on if they love what they’re doing. Some love racing and some don’t.” Teaforthree is clearly one that does, although she wasn’t expecting him to be as good as he’s turned out.

“He was never bought to be trained for the Grand National. It just so happened that he turned into a good racing horse. “We bought him at a sale in Doncaster; he’d just won a point to point in Ireland and he’d won a good few hurdles that year.” After his win at Cheltenham last year, it followed that Teafortreeh would be entered for the Grand National, the most valuable event in Britain’s national hunt calendar. “You choose a horse for the Grand National in the same way you choose a horse for any race, but for the Grand National they also have to jump really, really well,” Rebecca explains. “Obviously you have to get a horse that’s well raced and we’ve got to that point with Teaforthree. “They have to have won some good races and he has. When he won at Cheltenham last year he jumped brilliantly. “It was amazing when he won there. Some people train for years and years and don’t win at Cheltenham. “It’s the Olympics of horse racing as much as the Grand National.

I think that was just as big a win.” But if those who move in the racing world know Cheltenham Festival as the pinnacle for the sport, the Grand National is the race fixed in the public’s imagination – not least because of the £975,000 prize money. Back home in Pembrokeshire, Teaforthree is being prepared for the race of his life – but his daily regime is no different to the stable’s other horses. It’s a monotonous schedule, just like that of a dedicated trainer whose life is more mud-splattered wellies than glamming it up at ladies’ day events. Although the end point, the race, is the ultimate buzz, getting there can mean long days spent in a box interspersed with full-on training. “We try to keep as natural an environment as possible here as a racehorse’s life can be quite boring in their box,” she says. “We try to keep them as happy as we can.” Living on site obviously has its benefits. It means Rebecca, a mother of two, can keep a close eye on her animals as well as her children and combine career and home life.

Fortunately her partner Gearoid Costelloe works in the same world, as an agent buying and selling horses, so he understands the demands on her time. In fitting style, love blossomed for them at a horse sale and their combined equestrian skills have helped build up an impressive racing stables. “We met at Kempton Races where he was selling horses. “He said if he didn’t sell a horse called Made in Time he would send him down to me to train – anyway, he ended up winning! “It helps when you both do the same thing because we understand what we do.” The couple’s children, Jonjo, two, and Alfie, 10 months, are looked after by Rebecca’s mother while they’re working. Although the Welsh racecourse Fflos Las is only an hour’s drive away, much of their work takes them to races and sales further afield. Not that Rebecca has any intention of leaving Wales. She is comfortable being based in Pembrokeshire, the place where she grew up and learned how to ride. The youngest of five children, her three sisters and brother showed no real interest in riding but she became obsessed from the moment she sat in a saddle. She was aged just four.

“My whole life has always revolved around horses. I went to school in Fishguard and as a teenager I would rather go to horse shows and go riding than clubbing.” As well as her lifelong love of horses, having the farmland and help of parents John and Sue to help with childcare has been an essential part of her success. “We are very lucky. If we hadn’t had the land here I might not have thought of training racehorses. “My parents live here and the family dairy farm, run by my brother Thomas, is down the road. “Me and Gearoid are away quite a lot. We do a lot of travelling to sales and races and because of where we’re based it means leaving early and getting back late. “It’s so busy with the horses there’s not time for much else.” But for Rebecca, who admits to being too busy to take a holiday for the past five years, all the sacrifices have been worth it. Although he was the home favourite, Teaforthree came a disappointing second in the Welsh National at Chepstow in January but that hasn’t dampened her confidence. In fact, she has learned valuable lessons from disappointments in the build up to next weekend’s competition.

Back in February, she sent the staying chaser to Haydock Park for the Betfred Grand National Trial. She had been in two minds about running him for several reasons and in the end he finished 10th, beaten by 43 lengths. Unsettled and ill at ease, before the race Teaforthree refused to eat. “We went up the night before the race and he didn’t like it. He was not himself. He didn’t like the new surroundings,” recalls Rebecca. The trainer will not be repeating the exercise when travelling to Aintree next Saturday. “We’ll go up on the day of the National. We could leave here at 6am and be there at 10 without too much trouble, and he could still have his home comforts the night before.” As for race day itself, Rebecca will be in the thick of the crowd watching from the sidelines. “When I’m there I normally watch the race on the big screen. There is an owner and trainers’ bar but I like to watch from the track. “I don’t really bet.

For me it’s a big enough bonus to run a race or win a race and it’s not necessarily the best horse that wins the Grand National so there’s a lot of excitement.” And nothing beats the feeling of winning. “It’s equally exciting watching a race as riding in one. You train all the week beforehand and it’s amazing when you win because it’s so competitive and hard to get winners. It’s an amazing feeling.” Like us on Facebook Most Read Most Recent Most Read Most Recent Free Grand National Bet Free Grand National Bet by admin Tony McCoy’s win in the 2010 Grand National aboard Don’t Push It served as a stepping stone for the 14-times champion jockey into a territory that had so far eluded his illustrious career. Those thinking that the win would quench the jockeys thirst for victories were sent an immediate message the following day as he mounted three rides and one winner at Southwell. With barely enough time for the win at Aintree to sink in, McCoy reflected on the race that had to that point been missing from his long list of accomplishments. “It was amazing and very surreal.

But the emotion was something I’ve never felt before as a jockey.” McCoy’s riding style Up to that point questions had been raised about McCoy’s riding style compared to other riders such as Ruby Walsh. His tough and dogged approach to races was put up as a reason why perhaps he had so far failed to capture the Grand National title. The jockey, however, never had that worry and put it down to merely luck and nothing else. “I always felt that if I worked hard enough I had control over being champion. But to win the national you need lots of luck. I’ve never felt like I had control over something like that.” Nearing to his 40th birthday McCoy will no doubt have a ride for the 2014 Grand National, aboard who is still to be decided by the champion jockey. To say McCoy has mellowed in his old age would be a misrepresentation of just what the Grand National win meant to the jockey, and is perhaps testament to his relationship with his wife Chanelle and the birth of his daughter, Eve. What is for sure is that retirement is not on McCoy’s mind at present.

by admin Last year, the John Smith’s Grand National Chase was taken by a long shot victory from Auroras Encore, an Irish-bred Thoroughbred that had been given a 10-03 handicap and managed a 66-1 upset. Jockey Ryan Mania rode Auroras Encore during the unexpected victory enjoyed last year by trainer Sue Smith and owners Douglas Pryde, David van der Hoeven, and Jim Beaumont. Auroras Encore won with a time of 9:12 and surprised the crowd of around 70,000 spectators. In winning the 2013 Grand National, Auroras Encore caused a decided upset for favoured horses Seabass and Colberts Station. Trainer Sue Smith was pleasantly surprised by the performance of Auroras Encore at Aintree in 2013. Smith is one of only three female trainers to have worked as trainer for a winning horse in the Grand National Chase in the entire history of the event, the other two being Venetia Williams in 2009 and Jenny Pitman in both 1995 and 1983.

While Auroras Encore’s victory came as a surprise, the Thoroughbred does have some impressive performances from the past to boast of, including a second place finish at the 2012 Scottish National and a victory in a handicap hurdle race in 2008 at the Grand National meeting. Auroras Encore has been described as a “spring horse”, meaning that he performs better as the weather starts to warm up. Auroras Encore Odds For Grand National 2014 Going into the 2014 Grand National event, Auroras Encore is at 33-1. Auroras Encore has career winnings in excess of £700,000 and has been racing since February of 2007. This bay gelding was bred in Ireland but raised in England, and to date Auroras Encore has had forty-four starts, two hurdle race wins, and six steeplechase wins. Auroras Encore was sired by Second Empire- winner of the 1997 Grand Criterium- and foaled in 2002.

The 2013 victory of Auroras Encore was notable not only for the fact that it proved to be a surprising upset for Grand National followers, but also because all racers finished the course unscathed. Also, the race proved to be uplifting for Ryan Mania, who only two years previously had left jockeying due to disenchantment with a lack of opportunity. Auroras Encore came in ahead of the second place Cappa Bleu and third place Teaforthree. Despite the fact that Auroras Encore is not highly favoured to prove victorious at the Grand National a second year in a row, the horse will certainly be receiving a considerable amount of attention after last year’s success. by admin It was determined last February that Tidal Bay would head the weights at the 2013 John Smith’s Grand National competition. The weights were given at London’s Savoy Hotel, and 12-year-old Tidal Bay was handed 11st12lb. Tidal Bay will be priced best at Grand National at 25-1 after having won the Lexus Chase at Christmas time in 2012.

The Head of Handicapping of the British Horseracing Authority- Phil Smith- framed the weights and noted a 14-1 favourite with the majority of bookmakers in Seabass, who was given 11st2lb in the world’s greatest steeplechase’s 166th running. Seabass is a 10-year-old horse trained by Irish trainer Ted Walsh, who was the victorious trainer of the Grand National Race in 2000 with Papillon. Walsh expressed being disappointed with the assessment of Seabass given by Phil Smith in the handicapping. The Irishmen expressed decided pessimism regarding Seabass’s chances in a race where Tidal Bay is rated at 171. However, Seabass is not Walsh’s only iron in the fire in the upcoming 2013 Grand National. In addition to Seabass, Walsh will have Colbert Station in the race. Colbert Station was handed 10st11b among the 83 other entries in the race at the time the handicaps were given by Phil Smith. Like Tidal Bay, Colbert Station had a recent win.

In December of 2012, Colbert Station was victorious at the Paddy Power Handicap Chase at Leopardstown. It had been suggested that the daughter of Ted Walsh may ride one of his horses, as Katie Walsh finished third in the National the last time she rode Seabass in the competition. This was the highest female finish in the competition. Trainer Ted Walsh has noted that he is not very concerned with who rides the horses, but that they be in good form come race day. Tidal Bay has had three hurdle and fence wins at Aintree and succeeded in saddling 52 horses at the National. The owners of Tidal Bay- Andrea and Graham Wylie- have a considerable advantage this year as the Grand National approaches, and Tidal Bay is highly favoured to win by some accounts. Other contenders expected to challenge Tidal Bay and Seabass are Prince De Beauchene and On His Own, handed 11st3lb and 10st10lb, respectively. Ballabriggs- the winner of the Grand National in 2011- finished at sixth place at the 2012 Grand National and has been handed 11st.

The 2013 Grand National will combine Aintree victors of some of the most top staying handicaps with some of the top chasers in training. by admin Crabbie’s, home to the UK’s top-selling ginger beer, has put itself and Aintree in position to reap great profits from the upcoming Grand National races and Grand National Festival. Crabbie’s has signed a three-year deal with Aintree to be the sponsor of the Grand National and the Grand National Festival from 2014 through 2016. A huge opportunity for Crabbie’s This massive deal has granted Crabbie’s several excellent marketing opportunities. Crabbie’s is granted exclusive ginger beer and cider marketing during the events, a platform for extensive advertisement, and naming rights to the Grand National events. Crabbie’s is set to reach 9 million Britains and 600 million people worldwide through television broadcasts. Crabbie’s has tacked its name to every event in the Grand National. There is the Crabbie’s Fox Hunters’ Chase, the Crabbie’s Topham Chase, the Crabbie’s Grand National and the Crabbie’s Grand National Festival.

The Jockey Club Racecourses, which includes Aintree, welcomes 1.8 million people annually for racing events alone. These racecourses already sell Crabbie’s products, but sales will surely rise with Crabbie’s sponsorship. Crabbie’s has upped the ante for this crown jewel event by providing one million pounds for the prize money. It is the highest prize amount and the first million-pound prize in the 167 years the Grand National race has existed. A history of horse racing There is a historical and friendly relationship between Crabbie’s and the Aintree Racetrack. Halewood International, the owning company of Crabbie’s was founded by John Halewood, a racing enthusiast, whose horse Amberleigh House won the Grand National in 2004, the Beecher Chase in 2001, as well as competing in the Grand National another ten times. Amberleigh House was trained by the famous Ginger McCain. Halewood Inernational’s current chairwoman, Judy Halewood, partner of the deceased John Halewood, is the only woman to have trained and bred a competitor horse, Harley, which came in twelfth in 1991’s Grand National.

The relationship between Crabbie’s and Aintree seems to be on good terms with representatives from both companies speaking happily about the recent sponsorship contract. Representatives of Crabbie’s and Halewood International are staunch supporters of the Grand National. They are aiming to boost their sales and marketing not just by advertising their name at the Grand National, but by boosting the reputation and viewership of the event. Aintree representatives seem equally focused on growing the Grand National. They also comment on the extremely generous prize money and the history that is shared between Halewood International and Aintree. The Crabbie’s sponsorship deal seems to be sound both in business and in affiliation. Jenny Pitman: The Autobiography: Amazon.co.uk: Jenny Pitman: 9780857500168: Books Product Description Amazon Review To use modern parlance, Jenny Pitman OBE faced a double whammy when she applied for her trainer's licence. First, she was an outsider to the world of racing; second, and more importantly, she was a woman in what was still very much a man's world.

As she tells us in her frank and entertaining autobiography, simply titled Jenny Pitman, she overcame the first problem much easier than beating the second. Known throughout the equine world as the first woman of racing, Mrs Pitman--now Mrs Stait after marrying her long-time partner David Stait in early 1998--is still having to bang her head against the brick wall that is sex discrimination. She tells how, after entering a fitness regime at the beginning of 1998 and looking and feeling better than she had for years, a male colleague asked whether or not her sex life had improved as she appeared so fit and healthy! But racing has been Jenny Pitman's life and the book is a no-holds barred account of a truly remarkable career. After telling of her happy childhood as the middle child of seven spent on a Leicestershire farm run by her parents, she describes the happiness she felt at her teenage marriage to jockey Richard Pitman. That joy was to turn to tears 10 years later when her first husband, and father of Jenny's two boys Mark and Paul, twice walked out on her.

However, the outwardly tough-as-teak Jenny gritted her teeth and got on with the job of training racehorses. Jenny has achieved success in the world's toughest races and she fully describes the joy and heartbreak of landing two (it should have been three but Esha Ness's success came in the 1993 void race) Grand Nationals. Then there were the other Grand Nationals, the Scottish, Welsh and finally to complete the set, Irish versions of the event. In 1984 she became the only woman to train a Cheltenham Gold Cup winner and followed that up when the same horse, Burrough Hill Lad, became the first trained by a woman to land the coveted Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup. That was a record which stood until Venetia Williams took 1998's running. It is a frank book which covers and fully explains her run-ins with officialdom, press and even jockeys. The lead-up to her spat with Jamie Osborne is fully explained, as are the reasons behind her famous letter to Aintree officials over the state of the ground at 1998's Grand National.

All in all, an enjoyable and informative read in which Mrs Pitman, as usual, pulls no punches. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title. Review Facts & Figures Facts & Figures It is illegal for anyone aged under 18 to gamble Facts & Figures Records The first race was held in 1839, but it started in inauspicious circumstances, going off two hours late after confusion over weighing procedures. The aptly named, and 5-1 favourite, Lottery came home first. The 1929 National featured the most starters in the race when 66 horses lined up. The smallest field was in 1883 when just 10 faced the starter. The fastest ever time is the 8 minutes 47.8 seconds Mr Frisk recorded in taking victory in 1990. The slowest time is the 14m 53s it took Lottery to win the first National in 1839. The smallest number of finishers was in 1928 when Tipperary Tim, a 100-1 outsider, was the first of two past the post.

The greatest number of horses to finish was 23 in 1984. Hallo Dandy, ridden by Neale Doughty, was the winner. 17 completed last season. The 1997 Grand National, which was won by Lord Gyllene, was the 150th running of the race at Aintree and Sir Peter O'Sullevan's 50th and final commentary for the BBC. 2013 saw the first screening of the race by Channel 4. The shortest price winner was Poethlyn at 11-4 in 1919. The Course The first five Grand National's included one jump that was a stone wall. It was situated where the water jump now stands. Becher's Brook earned its name when a top jockey, Captain Martin Becher, took shelter in the brook after being unseated. "Water tastes disgusting without the benefits of whisky" he reflected. The Chair is the tallest fence at 5ft 2ins, and the broadest. The fence got its name as it was once alongside the seat used by the distance judge. The fences at Aintree are made up of spruce from the Lake District.

The cost of the building work is tens of thousands of pounds and takes a month to complete. As well as horse racing, Aintree has also hosted a European and five British Grand Prix. Stirling Moss won his first Grand Prix in Liverpool in 1955. The change seemed to work in 2014 as no horse lost his jockey until the Canal Turn, although there were plenty of early casualties last year. Horses Red Rum is the most successful horse, having won the Grand National three times: 1973, 1974 and 1977. The oldest winning horse is Peter Simple, aged 15 (1853); the youngest winning horses were Alcibiade (1865), Regal (1876), Austerlitz (1877), Empress (1880), Lutteur III (1909), all aged 5. Abd-El-Kader was the first horse to win back-to-back Nationals, in 1850 and 1851.

The Colonel, (1869 & 1870), Reynoldstown (1935 & 1936) and Red Rum (1973 & 1974) have also retained the crown. Can Many Clouds join this elite club this year? Moiffa won in 1904 - having disappeared a year earlier. On a trip to Liverpool from New Zealand, Moiffa's ship was shipwrecked. The horse was presumed lost at sea before turning up on an outcrop south of Ireland. The legendary Golden Miller won in 1934 and became the only horse to complete the Cheltenham Gold Cup-Grand National double in the same season. Garrison Savannah narrowly failed to emulate the feat in 1991. Manifesto has run in more races than any other horse. Between 1895 and 1904, he ran in eight races, winning two and coming third on three occasions. He only failed to finish once. Two Russian horses, Reljef and Grifel, competed in the 1961 Grand National, but neither finished.

Horses from Hungary, the Czech Republic and Norway have also run in previous Grand Nationals, although all with similarly disappointing results. Hungarian chaser Buszke was pulled up in 1868, while Gyi Lovam, the first Czechoslovakian challenger in 1931, came to grief at Becherï¿½s, was remounted but fell again four fences later. The Czech-trained Essex, Fraze and Quirinus all carried automatic top-weight in the 1980s and 1990s but failed to complete. The 2000 renewal saw the first Norwegian-trained runner in the shape of Trinitro, but he got no further than the first fence where he fell. Japanese thoroughbred, Fujino-O captured four consecutive renewals of the prestigious Nakayama Daishogai in his homeland before being sent to Britain to be prepared for Aintree by trainer Fulke Walwyn. The seven year-old was given the automatic top-weight of 12st and failed to get competitive under his welter burden in 1966, eventually refusing under Jeff King.

Five winners were bred in France ï¿½ Alcibiade (1865), Reugny (1874), Lutteur III (1909), Mon Mome (2009) and Neptune Collonges (2012). Mely Moss, who was runner-up to Papillon in the 2000 Grand National and the 1996 and 2015 runners-up Encore Un Peu and Saint Are, were also French breds. In 1998, Earth Summit, owned by a six-strong partnership, became the first winner of the Grand National who was also successful in both the Scottish and Welsh Grand Nationals. Only three greys have won the Grand National - The Lamb (1868 and 1871), Nicolaus Silver (1961) and Neptune Collonges (2012). Suny Bay finished second to Lord Gyllene in 1997 and filled the same spot behind Earth Summit in 1998. King Johns Castle was second in 2008.

Thirteen mares have won the Grand National, but the most recent was Nickel Coin back in 1951. Since then, the mares Gentle Moya (2nd 1956), Tiberetta (3rd 1957 and 2nd 1958), Miss Hunter (3rd 1970), Eyecatcher (3rd 1976 and 1977), Auntie Dot (3rd 1991), Ebony Jane (4th 1994) and Dubacilla (4th 1995) have all finished in the first four.

The complete list of winning mares is: Charity (1841), Miss Mowbray (1852), Anatis (1860), Jealousy (1861), Emblem (1863), Emblematic (1864), Casse Tete (1872), Empress (1880), Zoedone (1883), Frigate (1889), Shannon Lass (1902), Sheila's Cottage (1948) and Nickel Coin (1951). In 1923, Sergeant Murphy became the first US bred horse to win the race. He is also the joint-second oldest horse to win, at age 13, alongside Why Not (1884). The US bred Battleship, son of the famous Man o' War, became the first (and so far only) horse to have won both the Grand National (in 1938) and the American Grand National (which he won four years earlier). 1991 was the seventh and final year that the Grand National was sponsored by Seagram.

Aptly, the race was won by a horse named Seagram, bred in New Zealand. 1997 saw another New Zealand-bred winner in Lord Gyllene. Jockeys Tony McCoy is the most experienced jockey in the history of the National - his final ride in 2015 was his 20th National. McCoy won his only National on Don't Push It in 2010. He took the record from Tom Olliver who rode in 19 Nationals - winning three - despite spending time behind bars in a debtor's prison. In 2016 Richard Johnson will ride in the National for the 20th consecutive year since Celtic Abbey became his first mount in 1997 (unseating him at The Chair). Johnson has twice been runner-up, on What's Up Boys (2002) and Balthazar King two years ago, but is yet to win. George Stevens is the most successful jockey in the history of the National with five wins. His final triumph came in 1870 on The Colonel. Stevens died three months after finishing sixth in the 1871 race.

Together with the Lincoln Handicap run on the Flat at Doncaster, the Grand National forms leg two of the ï¿½Spring Doubleï¿½. The only jockey to have won both contests is Dave Dick, who captured the Lincoln on Gloaming in 1941 and the Grand National on E.S.B. in 1956. Bruce Hobbs is the youngest jockey to have ever won the race. The 17-year-old triumphed aboard Battleship in 1938. The late Dick Saunders is the oldest ever winner of the Grand National, partnering Grittar to victory in 1982. Saunders was 48 at the time. He was the first member of the Jockey Club to partner a Grand National winner. Brian Fletcher (1968 Red Alligator, 1973 and 1974 Red Rum) shares a 20th century record with the legendary Jack Anthony (1911 Glenside, 1915 Ally Sloper, 1920 Troytown), both jockeys having ridden three National winners. Plenty of riders have won the Grand National on their first attempt.

The most recent are Ryan Mania (2013 Auroras Encore), Liam Treadwell (2009 Mon Mome), Niall ï¿½Slippersï¿½ Madden (2006 Numbersixvalverde), Ruby Walsh (2000 Papillon), Jason Titley (1995 Royal Athlete), Nigel Hawke (1991 Seagram), Jimmy Frost (1989 Littler Polveir), Dick Saunders (1982 Grittar) and Maurice Barnes (1979 Rubstic). Ruby Walsh holds the best record of current jockeys, having won the Grand National twice, on Papillon in 2000 and Hedgehunter in 2005. Jockey William Watkinson recorded the first riding success for Australia in 1926. He was killed at Bogside, Scotland, less than three weeks after winning the Grand National. Prince Karl Kinsky, an Austro-Hungarian nobleman, was the first jockey from outside Britain and Ireland to ride when he made a winning debut on board his own mare Zoedone in 1883.

Tsuyoshi Tanaka, the son of a champion boxer, became the first Japanese jockey to ride in the Grand National in 1995, although his taste of the Aintree experience proved to be brief as he fell at the first fence on The Committee. American amateur Tim Durant was 68 when 15th on Highlandie in 1968 (although he remounted at Becherï¿½s second time). In 2012, Richard Johnson beat the record for the most rides in the National without a win. He has now ridden in the race 19 times without bettering the runner up spot in 2002 on Whatï¿½s Up Boys. There are 12 other riders who have never won (or have not as yet won) the National, despite having had more than 12 rides in the race.

They are: David Casey (1997-2015): finished third once in 15 attempts; Jeff King (1964ï¿½1980): finished third once in 15 attempts; Robert Thornton (1997ï¿½to date): never in first three in 14 attempts; Bill Parvin (1926ï¿½1939): finished second once in 14 attempts; Tom Scudamore (2001-2015): never in first three in 14 attempts; Graham Bradley (1983ï¿½1999): finished second once in 14 attempts; Chris Grant (1980ï¿½1994): finished second three times in 13 attempts; Stan Mellor (1956ï¿½1971): finished second once in 13 attempts; David Nicholson (1957ï¿½1973): never in first three in 13 attempts; George Waddington (1861ï¿½1882): finished second once in 13 attempts; Walter White (1854ï

¿½1869): finished second once in 13 attempts; Andrew Thornton (1996-2013): never in first three in 13 attempts.

Peter Scudamore technically lined up for thirteen Grand Nationals without winning but the last of those was the void race of 1993, which meant that he officially competed in twelve Nationals. Many other well-known jockeys have failed to win the Grand National. These include champion jockeys such as Terry Biddlecombe, John Francome, Josh Gifford, Stan Mellor, Jonjo O'Neill (who never finished the race) and Fred Rimell. Three jockeys who led over the last fence in the National but lost the race on the run-in ended up as television commentators: Lord Oaksey (on Carrickbeg in 1963), Norman Williamson (on Mely Moss in 2000), and Richard Pitman (on Crisp in 1973). Pitman's son Mark also led over the last fence, only to be pipped at the post when riding Garrison Savannah in 1991. Female Jockeys Since Charlotte Brew became the first in 1977, female jockeys have participated in 19 Grand National's. Brew attracted huge media attention when partnering her own horse Barony Fort.

She was a guest on the BBC Sports Personality of the Year show and the Daily Mirror arranged a day-trip on Concorde to Washington. She was also unseated in the 1982 race. Geraldine Rees became the first to complete the course (albeit in last place) in 1982. She fell at the first a year later and went on to train for 12 years in Lancashire, before retiring in 2010. In 2012 Katie Walsh (sister of two-time winner Ruby Walsh) achieved the best placing by a woman to date - 3rd place on Seabass. In 2013, she rode that same horse when he was sent off as favourite, but he could only finish 13th. She also led up Papillon, when trained by her father and ridden by Ruby to win in 2000. National winning trainer, Venetia Williams, also rode in the race, falling at Becherï¿½s first time when riding 200-1 chance Marcolo in 1988.

Nina Carberry, now assistant to trainer Noel Meade, is the most experienced female rider, having finished on four of her five starts. Gee Armytage had to pull up her aptly-named mount, Gee-A, in 1988. A dual Cheltenham Festival-winning rider, she is the sister of Marcus Armytage - rider of the 1990 winner Mr Frisk - and became personal assistant to multiple champion jump jockey A P McCoy. Rosemary Henderson finished fifth when aged 51 on her own 100/1 shot Fiddlers Pike in 1994. She subsequently wrote a book, ï¿½Road To The Nationalï¿½, about her exploits. There was huge media interest in Carrie Ford when she finished fifth in 2005 on Forest Gunner, trained by her husband Richard. Ford, then 33, had given birth to her daughter Hannah 10 weeks earlier. Here is the complete record of lady jockeys to date: Year Don't call me a woman trainer... Grand National hopeful Rebecca Curtis says her gender is not important to her career | Daily Mail Online Don't call me a woman trainer...

Grand National hopeful Rebecca Curtis says her gender is not important to her career comments The wind is whipping up off the Irish Sea and howling round the yard of Rebecca Curtis. Her small office in the corner of the main stable building is littered with boxes of aloe vera, the odd shoe and car seats for her two young children. Curtis is a picture of calm amid the chaos of a thriving training operation. ‘It’s usually lovely,’ she says of the wild Pembrokeshire coastline where she set up six years ago on land owned by her dairy farmer father. Curtis’s rise to prominence has been swift. Starting with two horses she bought in Ireland, it has grown to around 50, including Saturday’s Grand National favourite, Teaforthree. At 6am on the big day, Curtis, her partner Gearoid Costelloe and ‘Tea’, as the ‘horse of a lifetime’ is nicknamed, will set off on the four-hour journey to Aintree. If he wins, Curtis would become only the third woman to train a Grand National victor, after Jenny Pitman and Venetia Williams. But Curtis is not one for sentiment — or big statements.

Together: Trainer Rebecca Curtis with her Cheltenham Festival winner Teaforthree Big future: Curtis is regarded as one of the most exciting trainers on the horse racing circuit Star name: Teaforthree in action at the Diamond Jubilee National Hunt Chase at Cheltenham RELATED ARTICLES Share this article Share ‘I don’t think it makes a difference what sex you are as long as you’re doing all right,’ she says. ‘It’s results everyone notices. ‘I don’t think being a woman trainer is seen as out of the ordinary any more because there’s plenty of female trainers who do as well as the men. Look at Venetia, she’s done as well as anyone all winter. I don’t even think of being known as a lady trainer, it doesn’t bother me.’ Even so, with no female jockey likely to get a ride in the National this year — Seabass, the ride of Irish amateur Katie Walsh, is ruled out — Curtis will be flying the flag for women in racing. But it is unlikely she would ever put a woman jockey on one of her horses in the National. ‘I’ll be honest,’ she says.

‘I don’t think women are as well equipped because they’re not as strong as men. There are some very good women jockeys out there — Nina Carberry, Katie Walsh — and women do a good job, but I think it’s hard. ‘In any sport, you wouldn’t see men against women in the same category and I think men have got to be stronger. I use female riders to ride out, but I think that’s different because you don’t have to have the same strength as you do to ride in a race.’ In her home, Venetia Williams famously kept a framed copy of a cartoon from Horse And Hound depicting her and Pitman as the Posh and Scary Spice of racing. In that scenario, Curtis would surely fit in neatly as Baby Spice. At just 33, she is one of the most successful young trainers around. She is so highly thought of that Irish millionaire JP McManus, one of the most prolific owners in racing, has seven horses in training with her.

Trailblazer: Venetia Williams is one of only two women to train a Grand National winner On the rise: Curtis thinks of Irish amateur Katie Walsh as one of the best female jockeys Different: Curtis believes that women jockeys, such as Nina Carberry, aren't as well equipped as men The philosophy at Rebecca Curtis Racing is to keep things as relaxed as possible, right down to the partitions between each stable box — bars as opposed to blocks so each horse can see their neighbour. Each afternoon they are turned out into the nearby field so they can run around together and roll in the mud. In the course of a morning with Curtis she raises her voice only once, to caution three-year-old son Jonjo, who is toddling perilously close to an oncoming thoroughbred. ‘I try to keep everything calm,’ she says. ‘I think that extends to the horses. I’ve been round plenty of yards where people are shouted at the whole time, if they’re five minutes late in a school. ‘But here we have a very relaxed atmosphere which I don’t mind because jobs do get done properly.

People aren’t under the same pressure as in bigger yards.’ Curtis is the second youngest of seven children and her siblings live in and around Newport on the Pembrokeshire coast. Her eldest sister is a teacher, one brother is a quantity surveyor. Another, Darren, owns the local pub and sister Isobel owns the outdoor shop opposite. Sophie is married to Jules, who owns the golf club, and Thomas works on the dairy farm with Curtis’s father. ‘I think you possibly become a bit more robust having so many siblings,’ she says. ‘I was always quite strongwilled — whether that’s from being in a big family, I don’t know. I’m very ambitious. I think you have to be to be successful in anything you do. You have to be really dedicated and competitive.’ Trusted: Irish millionaire JP McManus, left, has seven horses training with Curtis Victory: Curtis alongside jockey Barry Geraghty, left, celebrate after winning the RSA Chase at Cheltenham Curtis was the only one of her siblings to take after her half-Russian mother in her love of horses. She began riding at four and was a national level showjumper.

‘With showjumping, you need so much money behind you,’ she says. ‘At least with racing you’ve got fairly good prize money — and if you have a good horse it’ll pay for itself. Racing made more sense and I preferred it anyway. ‘Then I spent five years working in yards in California. I knew once I set up here I’d be here for life, so as I was young I wanted to see the world a bit. It’s nice to see different ideas and how other people do it.’ If Curtis was to win the National, she knows the effect it would have on her yard. ‘You’d get massive publicity out of it and hopefully a few new owners and new horses, but mainly it’s an achievement for yourself and a very hard thing to do,’ she says. ‘Even if you’ve got the best horse it’s still not a straightforward race. A horse can go down in front and bring you down. You hear a lot of bad luck stories in the National.’ Last year, Teaforthree got a clear run round and came third. ‘It’s definitely better going in with the favourite than a 60-1 shot,’ says Curtis.

‘He loves the fences.’ Those obstacles have been the subject of polarising debate. Before last year’s running, they underwent an overhaul after lobbying from animal rights groups. Safer plastic cores were introduced and there were no fatalities. But does Curtis think it is a cruel race? ‘I can’t say it is,’ she says, ‘They’ve modified the fences even more. ‘But that’s what makes it the race it is — the distance, the jumps, everything. If you start taking all that away, it won’t be the Grand National. It’s the same in any sport — rugby, football, whatever — you’re going to get the odd injuries because you’re doing things at a very competitive level. ‘Even when you see one horse lose a rider or fall, they’ll still choose to go around and jump the fences themselves. You don’t see them stopping and trying to get out of doing it. It’s natural to them. In a herd they jump and gallop together.’ Well-travelled: Curtis spent five years working in California in order to gain broader experience

Question: Three female trainers have won the Grand National, Jenny Pitman is one name either of the other two,
Answer: VENETIA WILLIAMS